Football (soccer) in the USA has experienced an exponential growth in popularity over the last decade. MLS has been able to attract stars such as Lionel Messi, Sergio Busquets and Luis Suárez to the league and the USA will also co-host the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup with Mexico.
The United States women’s national team have also helped spark football’s increased popularity by winning consecutive World Cups in 2015 and 2019.
The MLS announced in October 2023 that attendance numbers were up by over five percent in the year compared to 2022. It is therefore worth taking a look at the top ten biggest football-specific stadiums in the USA.
See below which venues are in the top ten.
Top 10 biggest football (soccer) specific stadiums in the USA
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10. Q2 Stadium
Location: Austin, Texas
Opened: June 16, 2021
Capacity: 20,738
Q2 Stadium is a newly-built facility in Austin, Texas. Austin FC, who were founded in 2018, play their home matches in MLS here. The overall construction cost of the stadium was around $260 million.
The stadium has hosted seven men’s and women’s international matches. This includes the first event that took place at Q2 Stadium, which was a Women’s international friendly contested between the United States and Nigeria.
Recent matches at the stadium include the United States Men’s National Team's 3-0 victory against Trinidad and Tobago in a 2023-24 CONCACAF Nations League match.
In 2024, Q2 stadium hosted two matches in the Copa America, organized by CONMEBOL and CONCACAF. Jamaica lost 3-0 against Venezuela on 30 June, 2024, and two days later Costa Rica were 2-1 winners versus Paraguay.
9. BMO Stadium
Location: Los Angeles, California
Opened: April 18, 2018
Capacity: 22,000
BMO Stadium is the home of MLS side Los Angeles FC and NWSL outfit Angel City FC. The stadium is in close proximity to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, and is the first open-air stadium built in Los Angeles since 1962.
Naming rights for the stadium were given to the Banc of California from 2016 to the start of 2023. However, in 2023, naming rights switched to the Bank of Montreal (BMO).
Club and international friendlies have been held at the ground, and also CONCACAF Champions League matches. BMO Stadium hosted the MLS All-Stars match in 2021, which saw the MLS All-Stars beat the Liga MX All-Stars 3-2 on penalties in front of 21,000 people.
Although the stadium was built for football, BMO Stadium has hosted a variety of other sporting events, such as Lacrosse and Boxing.
BMO Stadium will also be one of the host venues for the 2028 Summer Olympics held in Los Angeles. The stadium will host men’s and women’s football games, as well as track and field events.
8. Shell Energy Stadium
Location: Houston, Texas
Opened: May 12, 2012
Capacity: 22,039
Shell Energy Stadium is the home of Houston Dynamo of MLS and NWSL club Houston Dash. Previously, the stadium had been named the BBVA Compass Stadium, BBVA Stadium and PNC stadium. On January 17, 2023, Shell Energy signed an agreement to gain the stadium’s naming rights.
It is an open-air stadium, which has hosted matches in the CONCACAF Men’s Gold Cup, along with matches for the USA’s women’s team.
Shell Energy Stadium will host six matches in the upcoming 2024 CONCACAF Women’s Gold Cup, which begins on February 20.
The stadium has also hosted other sporting events, including Rugby Union, Gaelic football and college football.
Shortly after their acquisition of the naming rights, Shell Energy announced their plans to reduce carbon emissions and increase renewable energy across the stadium, including significant improvements to the stadium’s LED lighting.
7. CityPark
Location: St Louis, Missouri
Opened: November 16, 2022
Capacity: 22,423
CityPark is a newly-built stadium in St Louis, Missouri, which is the home venue for St. Louis City SC, who play in the MLS. The overall construction cost of the stadium was $457.8 million.
Originally, the stadium was called the Centene Stadium. However, on October 25, 2022, Centene Corporation pulled out of the stadium naming rights deal. Since then, the stadium has been called CityPark.
CityPark has hosted women’s and men’s international friendlies, and also was the venue for two group stage matches in the 2023 CONCACAF Gold Cup.
The first match held at the stadium was contested between St. Louis CITY2, the reserve team of St. Louis City, and Bayer 04 Leverkusen on November 16, 2022. Leverkusen ran out comfortable 3-0 winners in front of a capacity crowd.
6. Red Bull Arena
Location: Harrison, New Jersey
Opened: March 20, 2010
Capacity: 25,000
Since 2010, the New York Red Bulls of the MLS have played their home matches at Red Bull Arena. NJ/NY Gotham FC, who play in the NWSL, also play here.
The first match at the stadium saw the New York Red Bulls defeat Brazilian team Santos FC 3-1 in front of 25,000 fans.
Since the opening of the stadium, Red Bull Arena has hosted high-profile football clubs from across the world. In 2011, the arena hosted the MLS All-Star match, where the All-Star team lost 4-0 to Manchester United.
New York Red Bulls have also played the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea, A.S. Roma and FC Barcelona in pre-season friendlies.
Red Bull Arena has also hosted Rugby Union, American football and Lacrosse matches.
5. Providence Park
Location: Portland, Oregon
Opened: October 9, 1926
Capacity: 25,218
Providence Park is the oldest stadium on this list, having officially opened in 1926. Multnomah Athletic Club played at the facility from the beginning of 1893, and in 1926, the stadium was fully constructed with stands and seating in place.
Portland Timbers and Portland Thorns use Providence Park for their home matches, in the MLS and NWSL, respectively.
Providence Park has hosted important international and club matches, including the FIFA Women’s World Cup in 1999 and 2003, and also the 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup. In the 2003 Women’s World Cup, Providence Park was the venue for both semi-final matches where Germany and Sweden went through to the final.
The stadium also hosted the MLS All-Stars game in 2014, which saw the MLS All-Stars beat Pep Guardiola’s Bayern Munich 2-1.
There have been various renovation projects to the ground since 1956 when additional seats were constructed across the ground. Since then, renovation projects have taken place in 1982, 2001, 2011 and 2019. Most recently in 2019, an $85 million construction project saw the expansion of the East End with the addition of around 4,000 new seats.
4. Inter&Co Stadium
Location: Orlando, Florida
Opened: February 24, 2017
Capacity: 25,500
Inter&Co Stadium is another newly-built stadium and is the home to MLS team Orlando City, as well as Orlando Pride of the NWSL.
The stadium was privately funded by Orlando City at a construction cost of around $155 million.
The first game at the stadium saw Orlando City defeat New York City 1-0 on March 5, 2017, thanks to a goal from Cyle Larin in front of a capacity crowd.
Inter&Co Stadium is one of the host venues for the upcoming Copa América. The two games that will take place at the ground are Canada or Trinidad and Tobago against Chile and Bolivia against Panama.
US Women’s National Team (USWNT) have played eight games at Exploria Stadium, winning all eight and conceding zero goals.
It is also worth noting that the stadium was the first in North America to feature a safe-standing section for supporters, which is nicknamed “The Wall”.
3. TQL Stadium
Location: Cincinnati, Ohio
Opened: May 16, 2021
Capacity: 26,000
Opened on May 16, 2021, TQL Stadium is the home of FC Cincinnati of the MLS. FC Cincinnati were founded in 2015 and played their first MLS game in 2019.
The overall construction cost to build the stadium was $250 million and the opening game saw FC Cincinnati lose 3-2 at home to Inter Miami, following a brace from legendary striker Gonzalo Higuaín.
TQL Stadium’s design was inspired by the Allianz Arena, which has LED lights to display graphics and logos of the club. Before opening the stadium in May 2021, TQL said: “The stadium features first-in-the-world lighting technology powered by 2.7 miles of LED lights.”
Only six men’s and women’s international matches have been held at TQL Stadium. The USWNT beat Paraguay and South Africa 8-0 and 3-0, respectively, at this ground. Meanwhile, the men’s team beat Mexico, Morocco and Canada at TQL Stadium.
On May 15, 2022, TQL Stadium also hosted a concert featuring the English band called ‘The Who’, which saw 16,988 people attend.
2. Dignity Health Sports Park
Location: Carson, California
Opened: June 1, 2003
Capacity: 27,000
Formerly known as the Home Depot Center and StubHub Center due to sponsorship reasons, Dignity Health Sports Park is the second-oldest stadium on this list. The stadium was privately funded at a construction cost of $150 on the California State University campus.
LA Galaxy play their home matches here and between 2005 to 2014, it was also the home of Chivas USA of the MLS but the club dissolved in 2014.
The first event that took place at the stadium was not a football match. Instead, the Home Depot Track and Field Invitational took place on June 1, 2003, as the inaugural event. Six days later, the first football match was played as LA Galaxy beat Colorado Rapids 2-0.
Dignity Health Sports Park was the venue for the 2003 FIFA Women’s World Cup final when Germany beat Sweden 1-0 after extra time. The stadium has held various men’s and women’s international matches and will host six matches at the upcoming CONCACAF Women’s Gold Cup.
There are other sporting facilities located on the Dignity Health Sports Park site. Included in the site is a tennis stadium that holds 8,000 spectators, as well as a track and field venue and an indoor Velodrome.
1. Geodis Park
Location: Nashville, Tennessee
Opened: May 1, 2022
Capacity: 30,000
The largest football-specific stadium in the USA, Geodis Park, is the home of MLS club Nashville SC. Nashville SC drew 1-1 with Philadelphia Union in the first match at the stadium on May 1, 2022.
Geodis Park was originally named Nashville Fairgrounds Stadium and Nashville SC Stadium in pre-construction plans. However, they decided on Geodis Park when the stadium officially opened.
A key feature of the stadium’s design was to keep the fans as close to the pitch as possible. Fans in the last row of each stand are only 150 feet away from the touchline.
Geodis Park has held three international matches so far, including the US men's team against Ghana and the US women's team against Japan.
As well as hosting football matches, the stadium has held concerts, with the first taking place on June 7, 2023, as Shania Twain performed in front of 27,707 people. Guns N’ Roses and Pink have also performed at Geodis Park.
New stadiums under construction
There are two stadiums currently under construction whose proposed capacities would be in the top ten of this list. Inter Miami CF and New York City are currently both building stadiums with a proposed capacity of 25,000.
Inter Miami CF’s are hopeful that their new stadium, Miami Freedom Park, will be open in 2026. The stadium will be built close to the Miami International Airport.
New York City’s new stadium, currently named New York City FC stadium, is scheduled to open in 2027. New York City currently play their home matches at Yankee Stadium, however they have been moved to other grounds such as Citi Field and Red Bull Arena for certain games due to various stadium requirements for competitions like the CONCACAF Champions League.
The aim is to move into a football-specific stadium where the club can play their home matches all year round without restrictions.